Ethics Review Recognition Policy

Research ethics review committees (RECs) review the ethical acceptability of research involving human participants and use of their biological samples and personal data. The growth of international collaborative, data-intensive, and population-based projects has led to duplicated efforts and potentially inconsistent ethics reviews of the same study across participating research sites. In order to establish a common baseline, the GA4GH Regulatory & Ethics Work Stream (REWS) has developed the Ethics Review Recognition Policy. This policy provides a framework of essential elements for improving mutual recognition among RECs. It helps national, local, and institutional regulators and policymakers, as well as international, regional, or national accreditation systems.